HORACE PIPPIN IN WEST CHESTER

INTRODUCTION

One of the leading figures of 20th-century art, Horace Pippin (1888-1946) is known for his insightful,

expressive and bold paintings of family life, history, religion and war.

Pippin was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania. His family moved away when he was three but he returned

to West Chester in 1920 after serving in World War I as part of the renowned African-American regiment

known as the “Harlem Hellfighters.” Despite a war injury that severely limited the use of his right arm,

Pippin began teaching himself to paint in oil by 1930, using his left arm as a support for his right hand.

He was first championed locally by N. C. Wyeth and the art critic Christian Brinton in 1937, when he became

the first African American to have his work accepted by the Chester County Art Association. His work

quickly gained national attention, and entered major museums and private collections. Pippin died in

West Chester on July 6, 1946.

This guide will direct you to some of the locations in West Chester that are associated with Horace

Pippin’s life and career. In most instances these are sites that can be seen directly in his work. While often

viewed within the context of American folk art, Pippin was a self-proclaimed realist. His paintings were

truly intended to show how he saw his hometown. By visiting these sites, located within a relatively small

distance of each other, we can perhaps begin to imagine the artist’s perspective as he painted.

THE SITES

Teachers College Powerhouse/West Chester University

Now the site of West Chester University, the West Chester State Teachers College once featured a large

smoke stack as part of its powerhouse. As depicted by Pippin, the smokestack sits forebodingly on the

horizon in a stark winter landscape.

Teacher’s College Powerhouse, Winter, 1937

Oil on burnt-wood panel, 9 ½ x 15 ½ in.

The Harmon and Harriet Kelley Foundation for the Arts

Teachers College Powerhouse, West Chester PA, ca. 1938

THE SITES

West Chester Courthouse

Painted in 1940, the original courthouse is a landmark in the town of West Chester.

The Chester County Courthouse clock tower extends above much of the low-lying roofline of West

Chester today, as it did in the early 20th century. There are two major differences between the location’s

appearance today and in 1940 when Pippin painted it. Most readily apparent is the presence of a tramline,

which extended throughout the city in Pippin’s day, although the artist chose to omit it in his composition.

Included in the painting, however, is a tree to the right of the statue. While the tree has since been replaced,

its distinctive shape can be clearly seen in the early 20th-century photograph.

West Chester Court House, 1940

Oil on canvas board, 22 x 28 in.

Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia

Bequest of David J. Grossman, in honor of Mr. and Mrs.

Charles S. Grossman and Mr. and Mrs. Meyer Speiser, 1979

The courthouse, present day Chester County Courthouse, West Chester, PA (after 1915)

THE SITES

Gay Street

In Harmonizing, Pippin finds activity even in the sleepy spaces of his hometown, with impromptu singers

breathing life into an otherwise empty scene. Thought to depict a location less than two blocks from the

artist’s house (near the corner of Hannum Avenue and Gay Street), the prominent pattern of the fence in

the painting draws attention to the subjects while also connecting them to the streetscape.

The photograph on the left shows another example of life on West Gay Street during Pippin’s lifetime.

Harmonizing, 1944

Oil on canvas, 24 x 30 in.

Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin College, Ohio

Gift of Joseph and Enid Bissett, 1964

West Chester High School Band on parade in West Chester

as part of Washington’s Bicentennial, February 22, 1932.

Corner of Hannum and Gay, present day

Marker dedication for Horace Pippin on Gay Street,

West Chester, PA, June 9, 1979

West Chester, Pennsylvania, 1942

Oil on canvas, 29 ⅜ x 36 ⅜ in.

Wichita Art Museum, Kansas, Roland P. Murdock Collection

THE SITES

Pippin’s House – 327 West Gay Street

You will find Pippin’s house on an unassuming block of West Gay Street. Pippin spent 26 years at his

West Chester home after returning from WWI.

In 1979, the house was dedicated as an historical site of Pennsylvania. Among those present for the ceremony

were the Mayor, West Chester State Teachers College faculty and other important citizens of the day.

While not specifically mentioned by Pippin, his painting West Chester, Pennsylvania was likely inspired by

the houses in his neighborhood on Gay Street. Even the tree in the painting appears to resemble that of the

tree neighboring his home, seen in the dedication photo from 1979, but no longer in existence today.

Horace Pippin’s house, present day

THE SITES

Everhart Park

Settled by Quakers, West Chester has a reputation of openness towards men and women of varying

backgrounds and races. The town’s Everhart Park shares a similar history. Even before its donation

as a communal park in 1905, the Everhart family allowed the space to be used for religious and

abolitionist gatherings.

The Park was also the site of Pippin’s final painting and it would come to be known for its association

with the artist.

As a tribute to the life of Horace Pippin, the Friends of Everhart Park donated a red bench to replicate

that seen in the painting. You can find it on the West Miner Street side. Interestingly, the color red was

never actually used for the benches in this park but was instead the artist’s own touch.

A block north of Everhart, you can find yet another dedication to the artist, Horace Pippin Park.

Man on a Bench, 1946

Oil on canvas, 13 x 18 in.

Collection of Daniel W. Dietrich II

Children playing in Everhart Park, West Chester, PA, ca. 1930

ADDITIONAL SITES

Birmingham Meetinghouse

One of Pippin’s favorite sites, the Birmingham Friends Meetinghouse appeared as a subject multiple

times over the later part of his career. While the building dates to 1763, the land upon which it stands

was first dedicated as a Quaker meeting site in 1690 and has remained in use since. The Meetinghouse

served as a hospital during the Revolutionary War for the Battle of Brandywine, and the adjacent burial

grounds contain the remains of fallen soldiers of both sides. The Brandywine Conservancy assisted in

the establishment of the Birmingham Historic District, which includes the Meetinghouse, and has been

involved in conserving the surrounding scenic and historic landscapes.

Chestnut Grove Annex Cemetery

Horace Pippin’s grave is a short drive from West Chester in the Chestnut Grove Annex Cemetery. Founded

in 1862, Chestnut Grove Annex Cemetery was used by African-American residents who were denied burial

elsewhere. Pippin died in 1946 following a stroke.

Birmingham Meetinghouse, present dayBirmingham Meeting House I, 1940

Oil on canvas, 22 x 36 in.

Myron Kunin Collection, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Gravesite, Chestnut Grove Annex Cemetery

WALKING TOUR

The above map corresponds to the order of the sites listed.

Source: Google Maps

ADDITIONAL SITES

Directions to Chestnut Grove Annex Cemetery:

From the Historic Courthouse (West Chester Courthouse) head Northbound on N. High

Street and continue straight onto Pottstown Pike. The destination will be on your right.

Directions to Birmingham Friends Meetinghouse:

From the Historic Courthouse (West Chester Courthouse) head south on North High Street South (Business

Route 322) and continue straight onto Route 202. At the intersection of 202 and 926 turn right. Continue

on 926 and make a left on South Birmingham Road. The destination will be on your left.

Source: Google Maps

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

2015 Brandywine River Museum of Art

Researched in part with the Chester County Historical Society

Tour research and text

Mark Tajzler

Photography

Mark Tajzler

Biography

Audrey Lewis, Associate Curator, Brandywine River Museum of Art

Archival photography

Made possible thanks to the Chester County Historical Society and Pamela Powell

This guide was produced in conjunction with the exhibition, Horace Pippin: The Way I See It, on view

at Brandywine River Museum of Art from April 25 through July 19, 2015. The exhibition is made possible

by the Exelon Foundation and PECO. Additional support provided by The Davenport Family Foundation,

Wyeth Foundation for American Art, and Dr. Benjamin Hammond.